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When it comes to having a credit card with an annual fee, it’s important to make sure that you’re getting enough benefits to outweigh the annual fee.
One increasingly common way that card issuers are trying to offer value to cardholders: statement credits for things like shopping, travel, or dining.
The American Express Gold Card, which was relaunched in 2018 with a revamped rewards earning program, offers two different credits: one that covers up to $100 of airline fees, and another, worth up to $120 each year, that can be used toward dining out.
The credit is broken out into monthly $10 chunks and applied automatically to purchases made at a few specific restaurants: Cheesecake Factory, Ruth’s Chris Steak House, and at participating Shake Shack locations. That’s a somewhat limited list, but fortunately, the credit also applies to any order placed through food delivery services GrubHub or Seamless.
I use my monthly credits through Seamless. Just about every restaurant I get takeout from is available through the service, and chances are I’m going to get takeout or delivery at least once a month.
Once you are opt-in for the credit on your card’s benefits webpage, it will post automatically.
The AmEx Gold Card offers 4x points back per dollar spent at US restaurants and on the first $25,000 spent annually at US supermarkets (and 1x point after that), so in addition to the monthly credits, you’ll earn plenty of points on those purchases, too.
The card also earns 3x points back on flights booked directly with the airline or AmEx Travel, and 1x point back on everything else.
Be sure to read our full 2019 review for the rest of the Ames Gold Card’s benefits and features.
The card offers a welcome bonus of 35,000 points when you spend $2,000 in the first three months. Some people are specifically targeted for higher offers too.
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